Oral History Australia is delighted to announce the winners of the 2021 OHA Book Award and the 2021 OHA Media Award, with two of the three winners coming from Western Australia and the other from New South Wales.
OHA national president Al Thomson made the announcement at the OHA AGM, which was held virtually on 14 October 2021.
The Hazel de Berg award for Excellence in Oral History is held over so that it can be awarded at the postponed OHA Biennial Conference taking place in Tasmania in October 2022. Nominations already submitted are accepted and the deadline for nominations is now extended to 1 August 2022.
2021 OHA Book Award
Joint winners:
- Many Maps, Charting Two Cultures, First Nations and Europeans in Western Australia by Bill and Jenny Bunbury (UWA Publishing, 2020)
- In the Eye of the Storm: Volunteers and Australia’s response to the HIV/AIDS crisis by Robert Reynolds, Shirleene Robinson and Paul Sendziuk (NewSouth Publishing, 2021).
Two other books also made the short list: Out of the Madhouse: from Asylums to Caring Community? by Sandy Jeffs and Margaret Leggatt; and Upheaval: Disrupted lives in journalism, edited by Andrew Dodd and Matthew Ricketson.
2021 OHA Media Award
The winner is: Stories of Strength: Songs and Stories from Anne Street Reserve 2021.
Using material from the Anne St Reserve Oral History and Concert Project, Stories of Strength was a concert that was produced by Big MAMA Productions, and performed in Broome in May 2021.
Stories of Strength from PAKAM Productions on Vimeo.
Award citations
Find out more about the winning projects and read the judges’ comments.
Many thanks to OHA Book Award Judging Panel members Peg Fraser, Beth Robertson and Maria Savvidis, and to OHA Media Award Judging Panel members Elisabeth Gondwe, Anisa Puri and Hamish Sewell.